


Do You Like Our Family?  We Made It With Our Tears

by Triforce_Green



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: AU: Annoying Dog is not Toby Fox, Alphys and Sans team up, Everyone adores Frisk, Frisk has night terrors, Frisk is possessed, Frisk likes Puns, Gender-Neutral Frisk, Momma Toriel, Multi, Sans Makes Puns, Sans makes a promise, Scientist Sans, Uncle Sans, Visually-impaired Frisk, monsters are well-accepted (mostly)
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-03-12
Updated: 2016-03-23
Packaged: 2018-05-26 05:12:39
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,425
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6225328
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Triforce_Green/pseuds/Triforce_Green
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Frisk did it.  The monsters are all on the surface, and mostly they're being accepted quite well.  But all is not right with our favorite group of misfits, particularly the one who saved them all.  They helped the monsters, but who's going to help them?</p>
<p>Sans hates making promises.  So why did he make another one?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Night Terriers

It was half past two in the morning on Saturday when Sans heard a soft knock on his bedroom door. There was only one person who would come knocking at this hour, and only for one reason. The monster sighed, looking up from the laptop perched on his legs. He lay the device on his bed, closing it and making sure it locked before heading to the door.

He greeted Toriel with his usual skeletal grin and worried eyes. Hers were baggy, near tears. Her hunched shoulders did her no favors either. “Again?”

Toriel’s voice trembled as she answered. “He won’t even let me near him. He screams if I get close. Sans, I do hate to bother you at this hour, but…”

He was already moving out the door, heading down the hall of the large country home Mettaton had purchased for them mostly for Frisk’s sake. He looked back at Toriel. “Go on, Tori. I’ll take care of the kid. Promise. You need some rest.”

She was wringing her paws. “Oh, I won’t be able to rest, but thank you…I’ll…I’ll be in the kitchen if you need me…” She slumped off, feeling helpless. At the very least, she could bake a pie.

Sans eased open the door, glancing around the room. Ah. There they were. Frisk was cowering in the corner by the bed, physically as far from the door as he could possibly get. Their eyes were open and unseeing, and they sobbed as they looked right past the guy. This was happening more frequently now.

“Hiya kid!” Sans declared with a wink. Frisk didn’t react. Soon, Sans sat down next to them. “Listen. You don’t have to worry. What you’re seeing? Whatever monster’s in your head? It’s not gonna hurt anyone. I promise. I won’t let it. You know that.” He knew what Frisk was seeing, why the child shrieked if Toriel came anywhere near while they were like this.

After all, when you’re seeing yourself kill those you loved, it was hard to let them get close. But Sans remembered fighting. He remembered beating it back. Again and again. And whatever this monster was that had a hold on Frisk…it had never gotten past him.   And this time…the kid went their own path. Sans was proud of them, that was for sure.

Frisk sobbed softly. “Okay, that’s how it’s gonna be, huh?” Well then, he was going to have to try harder. “So, how was the froggit’s presentation?”

Frisk blinked, looking at him as though just realizing he was there. They may have been.

“Ribbeting!”

Their lips twitched. A response. That was good. Frisk was looking at him gratefully, tears still flowing. It made him squirm. He knew what that look was for. And it wasn’t just because Sans was sitting here telling them bad jokes in the middle of the night. He closed his eyes, willing the magic down. Frisk was scared, they needed to be reassured.

“What kind of shorts do clouds wear? Thunderwear!”

A snort came from the kid at this point, and they hid their face. Progress!

“What do you call an alligator in a vest?”

“An investigator…” answered a small voice.

Sans chuckled, looking down at Frisk, who was smiling up at him through their tears.

“So ya heard that one before, huh? No worries, I’ve got a million of ‘em! Ever try to eat a clock?”

A look of puzzlement crossed Frisk’s face. Sans was delighted.

“It’s very time-consuming!”

That did it. They burst out laughing, hugging the monster happily. A sigh of relief escaped him at that point. “Uncle Sans’ll find a way to help ya, kid. I promised, after all…” Frisk smiled, kissing Sans’ bony cheek. “Thank you…for caring. Even when it’s really hard…” They were starting to tear up again, and the skeleton tsked. “Come on, kiddo. With waterworks like that, Tori’s gonna have to get a mop…” He teased, pulling out a hanky.

Soon enough, Frisk’s face was wiped free of tears, washed and furnished with a genuine smile. The little human held Sans’ hand as they walked into the closet, emerging a moment later in the kitchen downstairs.

“Tori! We smell pie!” Sans waved to the worried monster, who ran to them joyfully, slowing down before hugging Frisk in order not to accidentally startle them. “I’m so glad you’re back with us, sweet child. The pie’s not even done yet, but…”

Sans was already sitting at the table, a pack of playing cards in hand. “Anyone wanna play? Can’t go to bed without pie, after all…” Besides, after that episode, Frisk was unlikely to be able to sleep for a little while. At the very least, they’d want company.

That was how Papyrus walked into the kitchen the next morning to find a half-eaten pie in the fridge and a mess across the kitchen table. Sans was asleep in one of the chairs, cards still scattered around the table. For once, instead of getting mad at his slacker of a big brother for leaving such a mess, Papyrus shook him gently awake.

“AGAIN?”

“Yeah. Kid’s back in bed now, though. Toriel took him back up after pie and a couple of hands of go fish…” Sans started to doze back off. Papyrus shook him again. “SANS! ALPHYS WANTED TO SEE YOU TODAY, REMEMBER? SHE SAID IT WAS IMPORTANT…!”

“Not till noon.”

“IT’S ELEVEN THIRTY…” the skeleton said dryly.

“Oh. Well, I got a few more minutes then.”

“SANS!”

“All right, all right…!” He stood up and stretched before heading for the back door. Inside, he heard Papyrus’s phone ring.

“UNDYNE! I’D BE HAPPY TO HELP OUT TODAY!!”

Sans was happy that Undyne had decided to get his brother’s help at the center. The younger skeleton was good with the young ones, beginners, and those who were too intimidated by Undyne to accomplish much. And it gave the skeleton a purpose. Hopefully it would last.

He put it out of his mind as he arrived at Alphys and Undyne’s house. Of course the scientist had her own private lab in the building, and was thankfully not surprised to see him emerge from her den into the lab proper. The first few times he’d done that, she’d about jumped out of her skin.

“S-sans! You’re surprisingly early! W-well, I’ve done everything I can with what you and Frisk gave me last time, and-and…”

“And…?” The monster’s heart sank. Alphys was far too unsettled for this to be good.

“I’m afraid it’s only going to get w-worse, Sans…This other entity, what’s it called?”

“Chara.” He’s wrangled some info out of that stupid homicidal flower. Despite it being the remnants of Toriel’s child, he couldn’t help but feel angry toward it. Though without a soul…

“C-chara, right. Chara is, well, they seem to be implanted in Frisk’s soul…”

“What’s that mean for the kid, doc?”

“Frisk is at risk of losing himself c-completely. If the escalation in his night terrors are any indication, the entity is attempting to fight its way to the surface…”

“That ain’t gonna happen…” Sans’ eye flashed angrily for a moment. Alphys reflexively clutched her clipboard a little tighter, though she knew not to be afraid. She’d learned a lot about Sans since they’d come to the surface. As it turned out, he was quite the scientist himself. She just hoped that the two of them were smart enough to save Frisk, the way they’d saved all monsters.

“W-well, this other entity seems to be soulless, Sans. So that poses a set of issues. How do you have a being without a soul? How do you move it? Is it possible for a soulless being to not have a physical form? If so, how do you transfer that being?” She puzzled over this. “If I could study another soulless being…”

“The kid’ll never allow it. Not when Flowey was your fault in the first place…” He pointed out, not unsympathetically. The tragic truth of science under pressure was that you often went too far, usually before you realized the line had been crossed, and were left to bear the fallout and guilt of your actions. Alone, if you were lucky. At the expense of others if not.

Alphys sighed. “I know…I have been doing some tests of my own, as I’m sure you’ve been working on the side as well. So far, the biggest obstacles to getting Chara out of Frisk rest with the fact that Chara is not an entirely separate being, but seems to exist somewhere inside the kid. It’s like Frisk is…”

“Is…?”

“Possessed. It’s the closest thing I can use to d-describe it.” She sighed. Then it hit her. Perhaps…perhaps Chara was a ghost. Though one without a soul was surprisingly strange for obvious reasons. “I’m going to study the scientific aspects of possession more. I g-gave one g-g-ghost a body. If we can isolate C-Chara somehow, I’m certain I can do it again.”

It wasn’t a solution, but an idea. A lead. Progress, maybe. “Thanks, doc. I’ll see what I can find on my end.”

Alphys nodded. “And Sans? Don’t worry. We can do this.”

“That’s the spirit!”

“Get out of my lab!”

Sans laughed as he headed for the door, surprised he didn’t have to duck a flying clipboard after that one.

He headed into town, garnering a few stares even after several months on the surface. To be fair, humans held an innate fear of certain monsters. He wasn’t exactly cute and fluffy like Toriel or adorable like Alphys. But for the most part, everyone was used to seeing him around by now and just passed by. Most everyone did, however, except a rather cheerful corgi which came running at him. He stepped to the side and ended up on a tree branch out of the dog’s reach. It wagged its tail and barked at him happily.

“Hey there, fluffy!” He waved a skeletal hand, not feeling like playing. He ended up buried last time he played with a dog that excited. Underground dogs tended to only mess with Papyrus.

“I’m sorry mister!” He looked down to see a little girl staring up at him. “This is Thorgi Barkinson, my therapy dog!” She said cheerfully. Sans laughed. “Hi there, Thorgi!” Oh wow, a kid who liked puns! He knew he liked the surface. But he did have a question.

“Therapy dog?”

“Yup! I get sad a lot, and Thorgi helps cheer me up, and keep me from being scared when things are scary!”

Huh. How about that. “He’s cute, kiddo! Think you can keep ahold of him for me for a minute?”

She nodded, her curls bouncing, and picked up the little doggy who was still looking at Sans like a very tasty treat. He chuckled and came down. “Thanks sweetheart. Don’t let Thorgi run off too far; little dogs can get lost, okay?”

She smiled. “I won’t! Bye mister!”

Well, now Sans felt pretty good about things. That kid hadn’t even hesitated to talk to him. And she was punny, too! He hoped she’d go to Frisk’s school. Maybe the two of them could be friends once the semester started…? Well, it was a nice thought, anyway. He was walking back home, wanting to gather his thoughts, when he saw a flash of white out of the corner of his eye. He turned. Nothing. Huh.

He started to walk again when he felt it. Something wiggling in the hood of his jacket. He reached in, pulling out a ball of white fluff. Hey, it was Annoying Dog! “Awww! Hey little buddy. You just want friends and food, huh?” He cooed, cradling the fluffy creature and scratching its belly. The dog ruffed happily, tongue hanging out.

“You’re adorable…gosh, Frisk would love you.”

Ruff!

“Wait, what? You’ve got nowhere to go anyway?”

Ruff!

“You wanna join the family?”

Ruff!

“Well, who am I to deny a cute little guy like you…?!” He cooed. He tucked the dog into his jacket and smiled. “Do me a favor. Keep an eye on Frisk, okay? Try to keep him happy.”

It might seem an impulse decision, but Sans had a pretty good idea. AD did always cause trouble, but usually the best kind. And watching the creature annoy Papyrus would be hilarious. As he walked into the house, he spotted Frisk watering Flowey, the flower attempting to bite him. Maybe the dog would pee in the flowerpot. Sans could hope.

“Hiya kid! How ya been?”

“Good! Toriel says you should talk to plants, so I’m talking to Flowey today!” They said cheerfully. “I wanna keep him healthy, after all!” Flowey huffed. “Don’t talk down about me! I’m not just a flower! I nearly killed you all!” He growled. Flowey got like this. Angry and cruel one minute and sad and lost the next. Apparently the kids’ mercy hit him pretty hard, and without a soul the feelings attempting to take root had nowhere to grow.

Ruff!

Flowey and Frisk turned and looked at the skeleton, who’s stomach just ruffed at them. “Uh…Sans?”

Sans chuckled. “Well, I was gonna surprise ya, kid. Ever see any dogs in the underground?”

“Yeah! One stole Papyrus’s special attack, it was great!” They said with a laugh.

“Well, then you’re gonna love this!”

He opened his jacket and the dog barked as it hopped out, running over to Frisk excitedly. “Hi puppy!!! Does she have a name?”

Oh. She. Sans, truthfully, hadn’t noticed. “Well, Papyrus just calls her “annoying dog”. How about…Aidee?” He suggested. Frisk looked at the white puppy and petted her lovingly. She ruffed. “Aidee, okay!”

“Excuse me!”

Everyone in the room jumped guiltily, turning to see Toriel in the doorway, looking stern. “Why is there a dog in the house?”

Frisk grinned. “Can we keep her, Mom? PLLLEEEEEEEEAAASE?”

Toriel’s stern expression immediately melted. That just wasn’t fair… “Well, I would say no, but…doggone-it, I can’t resist that smile!”

Sans burst out laughing.


	2. All's Fair

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alphys has a plan. Things don't go as well as hoped. And so the tradition continues.

Frisk was the first to start laughing. Aidee had wagged her tail and barked happily, prompting the child to look up. When they caught sight of Sans, the laughter just escaped. They covered their mouth with their hands, but giggles escaped anyway.

Papyrus only looked up when he won, cheering as his vehicle crossed the finish line.  
“I did it! I, the Great Papyrus, am the racing champ!” He froze when he heard the giggles. Following the child’s line of sight, he started snickering too.

Toriel was out shopping for clothes for Frisk for school (how the child got out of being dragged along, Sans didn’t know, but he admired the skill), so Papyrus was babysitting. Not alone, of course. Undyne and Alphys were in a corner together. Alphys, for her part, was trying to whisper. But seeing Sans had her chuckling. 

“Um...Sans? Did you leave any up on the mountains?” This got Undyne going, who let out a raucous laugh. 

Suddenly, a titter came from the windowsill. Even Flowey was laughing, and he spent the majority of his time lately glowering at everyone and attempting to sow paranoia among the group. He was largely unsuccessful for various reasons, which lead to more glowering.

Sans, ever smiling, shrugged, causing a mini avalanche of snow to cascade from his head and jacket on to the floor. Behind him, a trail of snowflakes lead to the hall closet. “What? I was getting tired of summer…” He suddenly grinned, eye flashing blue as a bit of snow formed into a ball and slammed into Papyrus’s head. 

“No fair! You have all the snow!”

“I invited you along, bro!”

“You knew I’d refuse. Cheater!”

Alphys and Undyne watched for a moment, amused, as magic began flying, before the former head of the Royal Guard suddenly scowled. “HEY! I could beat both you losers with my eyes closed. Don’t be getting confident over there!” She jumped up, running off after the skeleton brothers.

Frisk grinned, safe among the chaos, and petted their fluffy friend happily. Aidee settled down for a snooze on their lap, and Alphys shook her head at the fighters. “Where do they get the energy?” She asked Frisk with a smile. The child chuckled. 

“So, what are you and Undyne being all secrety about?”

“Oh?! Um...well, actually...this.” She dug a flyer out of her pocket and Frisk inspected it. Covered in color and lively action, they read aloud. 

“State fair, open one week only…” 

Alphys nodded.

“So why the whispering?”

Alphys turned pink here. “Uh...w-well...I thought that maybe we could...invite Toriel. And A-Asgore…”

Frisk grinned. “Yeah! Sounds like fun!”

The scientist blinked. Did this child understand what she was planning? Perhaps not, but their enthusiasm was welcome. 

“Thanks! Undyne said it would never work…”

“HEY! That didn’t mean we shouldn’t try…” Undyne came back into the room, looking a little charred. Neither of them were sure they wanted to know how that happened. She reached up and put out the fire trying to catch on her ponytail. 

“Look. All I’m saying is that we shouldn’t get our hopes up for a quick fix. Agore is great, but Toriel’s got a point, and she’s REALLY mad at him. Not to mention...their hearts have been broken. A lot. So we need to expect minimal results, okay? If everyone has a good time, it’ll be a success, whether Asgore and Toriel make up or not.”

Wow. Alphys smiled. “You’re right...I just…”

“Ship them so hard?”

“You know it!”

The sound of the door slamming open stopped the conversation. Papyrus entered the room in a huff, covered in soot from head to toe (had they been using ashes from the fireplace as snowballs?).

“What’s this about ships? I’ve never been on one, myself!” Uh oh. He was about to start. Frisk grinned and held up the flyer. 

“Please?!”

Needless to say, everyone was on board with going to the fair. Even if some people didn’t know who all would be there…

******* ******* ***** ****** ****** ****** ****** ****** 

“O-okay, I’m scared…”

“Wow, who knew the Queen was such a fighter?!”

“Come on, Asgore, you can do it!!”

“Go Tori! Come on, have a blast!”

Both water cannons stopped firing at once, the entire area falling silent. Sans’ grin was in place. After a moment, giggles burst forth from the Queen like a torrent, and she lost her grip on the blaster. 

“Now’s your chance! Before she’s focu-”

Before Undyne could finish her sentence, Toriel had retaken her blaster, hitting the target dead on. It was a good three seconds before Asgore could recover, and that cost him the game.

“YES! VICTORY IS MINE!” Toriel cheered happily. She was holding several smaller prizes already, having beaten Sans 3 times in a row. And she’d been reluctant to play at first, saying she wasn’t sure she’d be any good.

She wasn’t. She was better than good after the confidence boost.

Toriel smiled and motioned for Frisk. “Go ahead, child. Pick anything you want. I can trade these little prizes for a big one…” She offered pleasantly. 

The kid thought, looking at all the big plushies hanging up on display. There were so many, and all the biggest ones were really cool. The collection at home was growing already, as nearly everyone quickly discovered how much Frisk liked them. Lifting up their new sunglasses, they spotted the perfect one. It was adorable, for one. For another, it reminded them of their story, and their friends’ determination. They pointed to the giant gray heart hanging from the ceiling.

Sans looked at Frisk sideways, who smiled back at the skeleton. Soon enough, the child had a giant plushie and was waddling along, the size of the plush making it more difficult. Sans chuckled. “Want me to run that home for ya, kid?”

Frisk nodded gratefully, and Sans was gone in a moment, taking the neat heart with him. 

Asgore was still smiling at his defeat. “You always were a better shot than me…” He said to Toriel fondly. She blinked, taken aback, then frowned. “Well, yes. I suppose I was.” She looked around awkwardly.

“Oh! Frisk, let’s get you something to drink!” She bustled the child off, leaving Asgore looking dejected.

Undyne, however, was grinning. “Hey. She didn’t get mad at him for anything. It’s progress…” She told Alphys reassuringly.

“Oh, you th-think so?” Maybe there was hope for those two after all, if it wasn’t just her little shipper heart that saw it.

**Author's Note:**

> My first work in the Undertale Fandom, guys. I plan on making this one a nice long series, so bear with me. Completely unbeta'd, so feel free to let me know if I've made any errors or anything, or if you have ideas or critique.


End file.
